Russia's mortality rate has risen sharply since 1990. Most experts agree that a major cause of this has been increasing alcohol abuse. But why have ever more Russians been drinking themselves to death? Various evidence suggests the main reason is not public despair in the face of painful...

"Russia is often considered a perfect example of the so-called "resource curse"-the argument that natural resource wealth tends to undermine democracy. Given high oil prices, some observers see the country as virtually condemned to authoritarian government for the foreseeable future. Reexamining...